The Bridge.
Soft, pink hand clasps dry and worn.
Sweet treble voice blends with low and calm.
Small feet dance round walking brogues.
Sun rains down through Oak leaves rustling.
Gravel scrunches, sprinklers tap, tap.
Whispering water across grass.
One squeals, the other laughs. One spins, the other claps.
One falls, the other cries out, feeling her pain.
So close the connection.
In the dancing shade, I am the bridge
Where two souls meet; my mother, my daughter.
Time, age. All an illusion.
The End
Thursday, March 29, 2007
I am writing a list of F.A.Q and their answers at the moment for the Geelong Writers magazine ‘Geelong Ink’.
As each section is completed I shall post them on this blog site.
Some of the writers I help and mentor may find them useful for future reference.
Anyone wanting to reproduce them elsewhere please remember that I retain copyright on all printed matter unless stated otherwise.
Frequently Asked Questions.
How Do I Write A Covering Letter?
Your covering letter for a short story intended for a magazine or newspaper should not be a ‘format’ letter which is sent to every editor or publisher you contact.
Each time you finish a manuscript, before sending it to anyone; you should search your market thoroughly and find the most suitable magazine or publication for your work.
You can only do this by reading the magazines and the internet sites of your prospective publications and become thoroughly conversant with their needs and the type of writing they will accept.
It won’t matter how good your work is – if it doesn’t suit the style or the guidelines of the publication you send it to, you have wasted both your time and theirs.
Find out the name of the editor you wish to send your work to.
A Dear Sir/ Madam beginning, shows you have made very little effort to research the most basic information.
Editors are noted for being small gods in the realms in which they work and enjoy being treated as such. They will rejoice in the fact you have addressed your missive to them personally. Of course very few of them will be polite enough to address your rejection notice to you personally, but that is just a fact of being a writer. Sending your query letter to the wrong editor and hoping it will be forwarded on – well. You’re dreaming!
Don’t waffle. The editor doesn’t care whether you are married, single or have two heads. He/ she- these days the majority of editors are women- reads thousands of words in a week and these and your ability to grab attention with a direct, concise and well written letter will matter most of all..
Your writing is your business. Therefore write your cover letter in a business like manner.
Include your name, phone number and email address. It is surprising how many people forget to put contact details on their letters. State you have enclosed a copy of your work…”The World’s Best Short Story’….for them to read as you think it meets their magazine’s criteria. (Naming your story is a must in case it becomes detached from your letter and she doesn’t know who to send the cheque to).
List your writing credentials if you have any worth listing. The fact you wrote for the school magazine is not what they want to know. If you mention your science degree and your short story is a gothic horror tale, it will probably not be the riveting piece of information which will ensure your acceptance and publication. Keep your information to the point and relevant to the market.
Thank him/her in advance for taking the time to read your work and enclose a self addressed and stamped envelope for the return of your manuscript.
End with, ‘yours faithfully’ or, ‘yours sincerely’……
Editors are busy people they make fast and usually; final judgments, don’t try cajoling them.
A well written one page letter will allow them to see you can string your words together and have made an effort to study their publication.
They don’t wish to know you are a novice- your writing will soon tell them that. They don’t wish to know you have always longed to be a writer, or that your family think you write really well.……on a bad day at the office, just for the heck of it, they may prolong your wait even longer! They are after all only human.
My Write (C)
How Do I Find My Voice?
This question is a little like asking how you become a well balanced and mature human being in ten easy lessons. It won’t happen that way.
Writing is a process, a craft. As with any craft or process the longer and harder you work at it the better you will become and the areas of your proficiency will begin to show up clearly. You will feel more comfortable within some areas than others and your ‘voice’ will become stronger, more confident and the strain of writing in that area will diminish as the pleasure increases.
It’s bit tiring listening to writers and artists complain about the ‘pain’ their work gives them and on a personal note, I feel it is a self indulgence and something of a pose.
The old saying ‘write what you know about’ rings true.
We have all tried the epic topics at one time or another at the beginning of our writing lives. Most of us failed dismally. Some of us have even found that it isn’t the large things in life which become our specialty but the small everyday things that affect all of humanity.
As a junior first year cadet journalist, the ‘weather reports and the lost dogs and cats’ were my first assignments. My editor did not send me out to cover the latest political scandal or the major motor accidents, because I wouldn’t have known where to start. This thinking applies to any writing, fiction or fact.
Just keep writing each day or as often as you can about whatever takes your fancy.
The more comfortable you feel about your subject the faster you will find your ‘voice’. Then, you can like a singer, start to train it. Many people believe they would like to write but they spend so much time talking about it they don’t leave any time to actually DO it.(C)
My Write(C)
As each section is completed I shall post them on this blog site.
Some of the writers I help and mentor may find them useful for future reference.
Anyone wanting to reproduce them elsewhere please remember that I retain copyright on all printed matter unless stated otherwise.
Frequently Asked Questions.
How Do I Write A Covering Letter?
Your covering letter for a short story intended for a magazine or newspaper should not be a ‘format’ letter which is sent to every editor or publisher you contact.
Each time you finish a manuscript, before sending it to anyone; you should search your market thoroughly and find the most suitable magazine or publication for your work.
You can only do this by reading the magazines and the internet sites of your prospective publications and become thoroughly conversant with their needs and the type of writing they will accept.
It won’t matter how good your work is – if it doesn’t suit the style or the guidelines of the publication you send it to, you have wasted both your time and theirs.
Find out the name of the editor you wish to send your work to.
A Dear Sir/ Madam beginning, shows you have made very little effort to research the most basic information.
Editors are noted for being small gods in the realms in which they work and enjoy being treated as such. They will rejoice in the fact you have addressed your missive to them personally. Of course very few of them will be polite enough to address your rejection notice to you personally, but that is just a fact of being a writer. Sending your query letter to the wrong editor and hoping it will be forwarded on – well. You’re dreaming!
Don’t waffle. The editor doesn’t care whether you are married, single or have two heads. He/ she- these days the majority of editors are women- reads thousands of words in a week and these and your ability to grab attention with a direct, concise and well written letter will matter most of all..
Your writing is your business. Therefore write your cover letter in a business like manner.
Include your name, phone number and email address. It is surprising how many people forget to put contact details on their letters. State you have enclosed a copy of your work…”The World’s Best Short Story’….for them to read as you think it meets their magazine’s criteria. (Naming your story is a must in case it becomes detached from your letter and she doesn’t know who to send the cheque to).
List your writing credentials if you have any worth listing. The fact you wrote for the school magazine is not what they want to know. If you mention your science degree and your short story is a gothic horror tale, it will probably not be the riveting piece of information which will ensure your acceptance and publication. Keep your information to the point and relevant to the market.
Thank him/her in advance for taking the time to read your work and enclose a self addressed and stamped envelope for the return of your manuscript.
End with, ‘yours faithfully’ or, ‘yours sincerely’……
Editors are busy people they make fast and usually; final judgments, don’t try cajoling them.
A well written one page letter will allow them to see you can string your words together and have made an effort to study their publication.
They don’t wish to know you are a novice- your writing will soon tell them that. They don’t wish to know you have always longed to be a writer, or that your family think you write really well.……on a bad day at the office, just for the heck of it, they may prolong your wait even longer! They are after all only human.
My Write (C)
How Do I Find My Voice?
This question is a little like asking how you become a well balanced and mature human being in ten easy lessons. It won’t happen that way.
Writing is a process, a craft. As with any craft or process the longer and harder you work at it the better you will become and the areas of your proficiency will begin to show up clearly. You will feel more comfortable within some areas than others and your ‘voice’ will become stronger, more confident and the strain of writing in that area will diminish as the pleasure increases.
It’s bit tiring listening to writers and artists complain about the ‘pain’ their work gives them and on a personal note, I feel it is a self indulgence and something of a pose.
The old saying ‘write what you know about’ rings true.
We have all tried the epic topics at one time or another at the beginning of our writing lives. Most of us failed dismally. Some of us have even found that it isn’t the large things in life which become our specialty but the small everyday things that affect all of humanity.
As a junior first year cadet journalist, the ‘weather reports and the lost dogs and cats’ were my first assignments. My editor did not send me out to cover the latest political scandal or the major motor accidents, because I wouldn’t have known where to start. This thinking applies to any writing, fiction or fact.
Just keep writing each day or as often as you can about whatever takes your fancy.
The more comfortable you feel about your subject the faster you will find your ‘voice’. Then, you can like a singer, start to train it. Many people believe they would like to write but they spend so much time talking about it they don’t leave any time to actually DO it.(C)
My Write(C)
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